Websnare's Blog

Flat vs. Skeuomorphic Design

In designing UI elements, two major styles employed are flat and skeuomorphic (skew-oh-morphic). Flat elements employ clean and clear lines with two-dimensional styling whereas skeuomorphic design imitates physical objects in three dimensions with depth and physical features. An illustration of the contrast between the two is Apple’s redesign of iOS between versions 6 and 7; with iOS 7, and now 8, Apple designers converted the UI to all-flat icons and all of the native apps such as the calendar app to flat design. Previously, the native iOS apps had been designed to imitate their real-life counterparts, now they are flattened to provide a simple experience. Flat design is coming into vogue, lending a polished and modern look to websites and apps employing it. When designing elements for your site, consider what sort of aesthetic you want to convey and if that aesthetic works better with flat graphic elements or ones with depth that look more like real objects.